Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, the longtime Democrat overseeing the largest jail in the Midwest and a key enforcer of Chicago’s radical sanctuary policies, has been put on notice by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
According to ABC7 Chicago’s I-Team, ICE asked Dart’s office to serve subpoenas connected to people held in the Cook County Jail. The accompanying letters warned that failure to comply “may constitute Tampering with a Witness” and could lead to fines or imprisonment.
Four subpoenas reportedly arrived in July. Three of the named detainees had already been released before the sheriff’s office received the demands.
ICE demanded the person appear for an interview at the federal ICE office or that the sheriff’s office facilitate transfer upon release, according to CBS News Chicago.
Dart’s office claims it cannot release people in custody for interviews or hand them over, hiding behind Illinois’ TRUST Act and Cook County’s own ordinance that explicitly restricts cooperation with ICE on civil immigration matters unless costs are reimbursed or a criminal warrant is produced.
The letters warned that obstructing compliance “may constitute tampering with a witness” under federal law. DHS has framed the move as an effort to compel “sanctuary politicians” to stop harboring and releasing dangerous criminals so they can be deported.
The same tactic was used against Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt in Minnesota, another Democrat running a sanctuary jurisdiction that includes Minneapolis. Both sheriffs have long resisted ICE detainers, contributing to the revolving door that has released thousands of criminal illegal aliens back onto the streets.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan and Immigration Subcommittee Chairman Tom McClintock specifically called out Dart’s office in a May 2026 letter demanding information on sanctuary policies.
They documented how Cook County Jail ignored ICE detainers, including one for an illegal alien with convictions for theft and child abduction/luring a child under 17.
Another case involved an illegal alien released despite a detainer who was later arrested for criminal sexual assault and abuse of a minor.
DHS data has shown Illinois sanctuary policies leading to the release of nearly 2,000 criminal illegal aliens in under a year in 2025 alone, murderers, sexual predators, kidnappers, and more.
The Gateway Pundit has repeatedly exposed how these policies turn local jails into de facto safe houses for illegal alien criminals while Americans pay the price in crime, victimization, and eroded sovereignty. Dart and his allies have treated ICE cooperation as optional at best and obstructionist at worst.
Jim Hᴏft is the founder and editor of The Gateway Pundit, one of the top conservative news outlets in America. Jim was awarded the Reed Irvine Accuracy in Media Award in 2013 and is the proud recipient of the Breitbart Award for Excellence in Online Journalism from the Americans for Prosperity Foundation in May 2016.
You can email Jim Hᴏft here, and read more of Jim Hᴏft’s articles here.
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